These Strategy Guides were originally written as Bunny Tools many years ago and in used on Arispotle Server ... they have been modified / adapted slightly over the years with the most significant changes made when Chanchey took over managing the hunts.
There are several approaches that can be used successfully against NPC Boss and each will work better in various situation and group sizes. This just represents what is most commonly used. The idea here is to get new players unfamiliar with the hunts "on the same page" so that we are not drawing 4 Aens, killing Rangers at Sergio, multiple tanks anywhere but Aen, etc.
So as to provide easy access to the material herein, please place any commentary in the NPC Hunt Discussion Thread
NPC Hunt Discussion Thread
Strategy Guide: Aen - The Desert Blade
Aen the Desert Blade is usually the 1st NPC done during the hunts.
Best route there for ...
-Kami From Dyron Kami TP, target Malmont Farm OP and then come into Aen from Southeast.
-Karavan Folks can use the Kara TP in Dunes of Exile near the west cliff and head south
-Ranger Folks can use the either TP in Dunes of Exile
-Mara folks can come from Frahar Towers TP, heading west.
Guilds / teams assemble / line up in a straight line at the top of the hill. Usual setup is as follows:
(1) Tank for Aen
(1) Tank for Left Flank (if available)
(1) Tank for Right Flank (if available and other positions filled)
Everyone else lines up in a straight line facing Aen.
1. When 1st approaching Aen, her two Varynx Body Guards will attack; after they go down, six (6) Aen's will appear
2. Tank will draw the 1st of the six (6) Aen's starting on the right side. When that happens, two Varynx Body Guards will attack from left and right flanks. Main tank will take Aen, if there's a 2nd tank, they will take left flank. If there's a 3rd, they will take right flank. Teams for the 2 tanks flanking the cats should line up on the same flanks.
The goal of the tanks are to take damage' not much sense in trying to max damage on what you're hitting at the regen rate is much higher than the damage the tank can do. Best route for the tanks is a high parry gear set up with hi parry shield and 1H weapon. If working the glanks, a enchant with Bomb 1 (2 targets) and some vamp is usefiul in helping draw the aggro as mages often hit targets before tanks secure aggro. Also have to least two melee actions ... one with basic default which uses no stam / HP credits ... for times when healers are stretched
3. Mage lines are set up generally as follows (Full team):
H-H-E-E-E-E-E-E-H where E = Elemental and H = Healer
Alternate for when not reaching end:
H-E-E-E-H-E-E-E-H
Set yours up for what works best for your team make up.
4. E's just blast away starting with the Varynx furthest to right (2 o'clock), then moving counterclockwise thru 1 o'clock, 11 o'clock and finally 10 o'clock. The reason the left side gets the 1st available tank is that the left has to deal with the cats longer. After cats all dead, all focus on Aen. As always check Sysinfo to make sure you hitting.
5. First H concentrates on tank if they in team. The 2nd and last H throw heals up and down the line
Common spells for line healers (one for HP, one for Sap):
Heal 18 (or Sap 18) - (250)
Spray 7 - 8 Targets
Sap Credit 22 - (225)
HP Credit 21 - (200)
Range Credit 13 - (50)
Alternate Spell
Heal 17 / Sap 10) - (255 / Sap 140)
Spray 3 - 4 Targets
Sap Credit 22 - (225)
HP Credit 23 - (250)
Range Credit 15 - (80)
Note if your line is not straight arrow, you won't reach the peeps at the other end of the line. Of course adjust accordingly by team size. Since you on top of each other, range can be maxed. Check Sysinfo (good to test b4 fight) to see if your hitting everyone. Making a League will help with heal targets.
Also check Sysninfo to see if you are doing damage. With NPCs, hitting is not necessarily doing damage and Sysinfo will make this obvious. Also, if you see 800 (1000), that means your are doing only 80% of the damage you could be ... use another spell to see what gives you biggest hits. For example, the cats (Varynx) at Aen resist Fire 30% and Cold / Rot 50% (Also Pierce 25%).
Alternately ... if nobody reaching end of line front healer can move to middle and each healer handle the 4 peeps in front of them ... also allows for smaller credits. Or double spell with Sap + Heal works, tho it uses much bigger credits. Experiment and see what works best for you.
6. Rinse and repeat for all Aen's till the real one gets involved (she's the one that gets stuck up in the air when ya first find her) . Run down to the bottom of hill to take her out.
Dos's and Don'ts:
Do - The two tanks on flanks should stay 20m or so from the mage pods if they want to keep cats off mages
Don't - Mages must allow tanks a few seconds to get at least 1 - 2 hits / taunts in on each cat before healing or nuking.
Do: The inside cats are typically harder to 'hold' so after Aen spawns, hit that one with a taunt on the way in and attack the outside one with circular attack. Another good tactic is to enchant your weapon with a nuke / bomb 2 targets + vamp spell.
Do - At > 20m from closest mage pod, the farthest mage pod may have trouble reaching w/ spells. So after cats are focused on tanks ... the tank's can back up while taunting / enchanting (2 targets), circular attack will allow more to hit.
Don't: Please don't drag your aggro trails on the group, most of which may be afk while waiting for start
Do: Please have the courtesy to drop 20 - 50m before reaching the group. It **is** very easy to get there with no aggro ... from kami TP for example, if ya head straight to Malmont OP, ya may have to walk around just 1 or 2 aggro
An effective method for backing up w/o losing the 'hold" on both cats is, once your taunt cool down ends, take 3 steps back and repeat the taunt inside cat / attack outside cat w/ circular attack. "Rinse and repeat" as required.
One more recent development ... if Frahar pop on the tanks, for reasons I can't understand, the cats will ignore the tank if there is a Frahar there, so if ya see them going for tanks, mages should try and take out ASAP.
Strategy Guide: Pei - The Pernicuous
Pei The Pernicuous is usually the 2nd NPC done during the hunts.
Best route there for ...
-Kami From Knot of Dementia Kami TP, head North-Northeast up the hill into the little alcove at the top.
-Karavan Folks can use the Kara TP in Knot of Dementia way up north and head SSW.
-Ranger Folks can use the either TP in Knot of Dementia.
-Mara folks can come from Knot of Dimentia TP, heading NNE.
Guilds / teams assemble / outside until all is ready and again line up in a straight lines in a star pattern away from Pei. Usual setup is as follows:
(1) Tank for Pei. Please no extra tanks ... need as many nukers as possible.. A level 100 healer will contribute more than a 2nd tank.
1. Tank will engage Pei immediately upon entering while everyone gets set.
2. As with Aen above everyone bombs away with their best nukes (usually poison). At the start you want to have a Bomb 1 in there as Pei has an invisible companion called Pei's Wrath:
Atysian Double Missile
Poison Damage 5 - (225)
Poison Damage 5 - (225)
Bomb Effect 1 - (40)
Sap Credit 23 - (250)
HP Credit 23 - (250)
Range Credit 15 - (80)
Time Credit 7 - (10)
That's a bit of a strain on the healers so if it gets dicey, might wanna tone that down to 200. Again, make sure to check Sysinfo to see a) that you are hitting (doing damage) and b) you are hitting Pei and Pei's Wrath. If you are too far away from Pei, you will see your spells hit but they will do no damage.
3. At a certain point, hunt leader may call out for Magic Protection Aura. When that point arrives, only the **designated** person in team should hit it ... and being on time when hitting it is important.
4. At certain points Pei will stun everyone. At this point, if you are not stunned, forget about the team and heal the tank. If there's a 2nd tank, ignore them and keep the designated tank standing.
5. At some point, Pei's Wrath will bite the dust. At which time you should switch and stop using the bomb spell. Once Pei's Wrath is dead, he loses his stun power.
There are several approaches that can be used successfully against NPC Boss and each will work better in various situation and group sizes. This just represents what is most commonly used. The idea here is to get new players unfamiliar with the hunts "on the same page" so that we are not drawing 4 Aens, killing Rangers at Sergio, multiple tanks anywhere but Aen, etc.
So as to provide easy access to the material herein, please place any commentary in the NPC Hunt Discussion Thread
NPC Hunt Discussion Thread
Strategy Guide: Aen - The Desert Blade
Aen the Desert Blade is usually the 1st NPC done during the hunts.
Best route there for ...
-Kami From Dyron Kami TP, target Malmont Farm OP and then come into Aen from Southeast.
-Karavan Folks can use the Kara TP in Dunes of Exile near the west cliff and head south
-Ranger Folks can use the either TP in Dunes of Exile
-Mara folks can come from Frahar Towers TP, heading west.
Guilds / teams assemble / line up in a straight line at the top of the hill. Usual setup is as follows:
(1) Tank for Aen
(1) Tank for Left Flank (if available)
(1) Tank for Right Flank (if available and other positions filled)
Everyone else lines up in a straight line facing Aen.
1. When 1st approaching Aen, her two Varynx Body Guards will attack; after they go down, six (6) Aen's will appear
2. Tank will draw the 1st of the six (6) Aen's starting on the right side. When that happens, two Varynx Body Guards will attack from left and right flanks. Main tank will take Aen, if there's a 2nd tank, they will take left flank. If there's a 3rd, they will take right flank. Teams for the 2 tanks flanking the cats should line up on the same flanks.
The goal of the tanks are to take damage' not much sense in trying to max damage on what you're hitting at the regen rate is much higher than the damage the tank can do. Best route for the tanks is a high parry gear set up with hi parry shield and 1H weapon. If working the glanks, a enchant with Bomb 1 (2 targets) and some vamp is usefiul in helping draw the aggro as mages often hit targets before tanks secure aggro. Also have to least two melee actions ... one with basic default which uses no stam / HP credits ... for times when healers are stretched
3. Mage lines are set up generally as follows (Full team):
H-H-E-E-E-E-E-E-H where E = Elemental and H = Healer
Alternate for when not reaching end:
H-E-E-E-H-E-E-E-H
Set yours up for what works best for your team make up.
4. E's just blast away starting with the Varynx furthest to right (2 o'clock), then moving counterclockwise thru 1 o'clock, 11 o'clock and finally 10 o'clock. The reason the left side gets the 1st available tank is that the left has to deal with the cats longer. After cats all dead, all focus on Aen. As always check Sysinfo to make sure you hitting.
5. First H concentrates on tank if they in team. The 2nd and last H throw heals up and down the line
Common spells for line healers (one for HP, one for Sap):
Heal 18 (or Sap 18) - (250)
Spray 7 - 8 Targets
Sap Credit 22 - (225)
HP Credit 21 - (200)
Range Credit 13 - (50)
Alternate Spell
Heal 17 / Sap 10) - (255 / Sap 140)
Spray 3 - 4 Targets
Sap Credit 22 - (225)
HP Credit 23 - (250)
Range Credit 15 - (80)
Note if your line is not straight arrow, you won't reach the peeps at the other end of the line. Of course adjust accordingly by team size. Since you on top of each other, range can be maxed. Check Sysinfo (good to test b4 fight) to see if your hitting everyone. Making a League will help with heal targets.
Also check Sysninfo to see if you are doing damage. With NPCs, hitting is not necessarily doing damage and Sysinfo will make this obvious. Also, if you see 800 (1000), that means your are doing only 80% of the damage you could be ... use another spell to see what gives you biggest hits. For example, the cats (Varynx) at Aen resist Fire 30% and Cold / Rot 50% (Also Pierce 25%).
Alternately ... if nobody reaching end of line front healer can move to middle and each healer handle the 4 peeps in front of them ... also allows for smaller credits. Or double spell with Sap + Heal works, tho it uses much bigger credits. Experiment and see what works best for you.
6. Rinse and repeat for all Aen's till the real one gets involved (she's the one that gets stuck up in the air when ya first find her) . Run down to the bottom of hill to take her out.
Dos's and Don'ts:
Do - The two tanks on flanks should stay 20m or so from the mage pods if they want to keep cats off mages
Don't - Mages must allow tanks a few seconds to get at least 1 - 2 hits / taunts in on each cat before healing or nuking.
Do: The inside cats are typically harder to 'hold' so after Aen spawns, hit that one with a taunt on the way in and attack the outside one with circular attack. Another good tactic is to enchant your weapon with a nuke / bomb 2 targets + vamp spell.
Do - At > 20m from closest mage pod, the farthest mage pod may have trouble reaching w/ spells. So after cats are focused on tanks ... the tank's can back up while taunting / enchanting (2 targets), circular attack will allow more to hit.
Don't: Please don't drag your aggro trails on the group, most of which may be afk while waiting for start
Do: Please have the courtesy to drop 20 - 50m before reaching the group. It **is** very easy to get there with no aggro ... from kami TP for example, if ya head straight to Malmont OP, ya may have to walk around just 1 or 2 aggro
An effective method for backing up w/o losing the 'hold" on both cats is, once your taunt cool down ends, take 3 steps back and repeat the taunt inside cat / attack outside cat w/ circular attack. "Rinse and repeat" as required.
One more recent development ... if Frahar pop on the tanks, for reasons I can't understand, the cats will ignore the tank if there is a Frahar there, so if ya see them going for tanks, mages should try and take out ASAP.
Strategy Guide: Pei - The Pernicuous
Pei The Pernicuous is usually the 2nd NPC done during the hunts.
Best route there for ...
-Kami From Knot of Dementia Kami TP, head North-Northeast up the hill into the little alcove at the top.
-Karavan Folks can use the Kara TP in Knot of Dementia way up north and head SSW.
-Ranger Folks can use the either TP in Knot of Dementia.
-Mara folks can come from Knot of Dimentia TP, heading NNE.
Guilds / teams assemble / outside until all is ready and again line up in a straight lines in a star pattern away from Pei. Usual setup is as follows:
(1) Tank for Pei. Please no extra tanks ... need as many nukers as possible.. A level 100 healer will contribute more than a 2nd tank.
1. Tank will engage Pei immediately upon entering while everyone gets set.
2. As with Aen above everyone bombs away with their best nukes (usually poison). At the start you want to have a Bomb 1 in there as Pei has an invisible companion called Pei's Wrath:
Atysian Double Missile
Poison Damage 5 - (225)
Poison Damage 5 - (225)
Bomb Effect 1 - (40)
Sap Credit 23 - (250)
HP Credit 23 - (250)
Range Credit 15 - (80)
Time Credit 7 - (10)
That's a bit of a strain on the healers so if it gets dicey, might wanna tone that down to 200. Again, make sure to check Sysinfo to see a) that you are hitting (doing damage) and b) you are hitting Pei and Pei's Wrath. If you are too far away from Pei, you will see your spells hit but they will do no damage.
3. At a certain point, hunt leader may call out for Magic Protection Aura. When that point arrives, only the **designated** person in team should hit it ... and being on time when hitting it is important.
4. At certain points Pei will stun everyone. At this point, if you are not stunned, forget about the team and heal the tank. If there's a 2nd tank, ignore them and keep the designated tank standing.
5. At some point, Pei's Wrath will bite the dust. At which time you should switch and stop using the bomb spell. Once Pei's Wrath is dead, he loses his stun power.
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